Six weeks ago, Queen drummer Roger Taylor announced the launch of a North American talent search looking for top-tier players to star in “The Queen Extravaganza” tour, an electrifying road show that will celebrate the band’s music and legacy. A plethora of vocalists, guitarists, drummers, bassists and keyboard players auditioned online at queenextravaganza.com, submitting video footage of themselves performing one of four classic Queen songs: “Killer Queen,” “Somebody To Love,” “Seven Seas of Rhye” and “I Want To Break Free.” With one week of open auditions remaining, Taylor continues to pour through the submissions and is preparing for the November 9th announcement of the lucky semi-finalists.

“What an amazing storehouse of talent we have unlocked,” said Taylor. “The standard is mind blowingly high, it’s really a thrill getting to discover some of them, keep them coming!”

The buzz surrounding “The Queen Extravaganza” tour has sparked worldwide interest with video submissions generating more than 6.4 million views to date. Television host Ellen DeGeneres was so impressed with the level of talent, that she invited one hopeful to perform his audition on her show. The contestant, Nashville’s Marc Martel, went on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on October 3rd and gave a stunning rendition of Queen’s “Somebody To Love.” Fans around the country felt the same way, awarding Martel the MTV O Award last night for Best Fan Cover. His performance from The Ellen DeGeneres Show can be viewed here: http://ellen.warnerbros.com/2011/10/marc_martel_performs_somebody_to_love_1003.php

Unlike Round One, in which vocalists and musicians were allowed to audition by performing one of four Queen songs, Round Two will see each semi-finalist assigned a specific track.

The semi-finalists will have between November 9 and 13 to submit their auditions. In another twist, Round Two auditions will be judged by the public. Between November 14th and 28th, fans can vote for their favorites at www.queenextravaganza.com , casting one vote per category. The top vote-getters will advance to the Final Round.

Those finalists will be flown into Los Angeles in early December, where they will perform live for Taylor and a panel of judges. More information on the final auditions to be announced shortly.

Launching in 2012, “The Queen Extravaganza” tour will feature three vocalists and a five-piece band and will be booked by powerhouse agency CAA. Taylor is fully hands-on, taking the role of producer and music director.

As the centerpiece in the 40th anniversary celebration, Queen’s entire 15-album studio catalog is being reissued in a series of deluxe editions. Every note is being tweaked, every piece of artwork is being cleaned, freshened up and resourced, wherever necessary, with the legendary Bob Ludwig doing the remastering, working from the original source material. The first installment, comprised of the first five LPs (QUEEN, QUEEN II, SHEER HEART ATTACK, A NIGHT AT THE OPERA, A DAY AT THE RACES) was released May 17, the second installment (NEWS OF THE WORLD, JAZZ, THE GAME, FLASH GORDON, HOT SPACE) was released on September 13 and the final deluxe box set installment (THE WORKS, A KIND OF MAGIC, THE MIRACLE, INNUENDO, MADE IN HEAVEN) is available on amazon.com on November 1.